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STIHL’s new route to market for battery and electric tools

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STIHL’s new route to market for battery and electric tools: The STIHL Group, a leading manufacturer of chainsaws and outdoor power equipment, continues to significantly invest in its battery strategy.

To support the company’s position as a leading consumer brand in the premium battery tool segment, STIHL is announcing a new electric and battery retailer in Great Britain in addition to the successful partnerships with independent Approved Dealers.

STIHL's new route to market for battery and electric tools

STIHL’s new route to market for battery and electric tools

Commencing in July, STIHL electric and battery powered tools, along with a selected range of accessories, will be sold by omnichannel retailer, Screwfix. The STIHL battery and electric range will be available in store, online and on the Screwfix App for Click & Collect from over 880 Screwfix stores in England, Scotland and Wales. In addition, Screwfix will feature a STIHL display system and offer a handover service at its Yeovil – Lysander Road store.

Warranty support and repair will be offered through Screwfix’s fast and reliable repair service and customer advice and support will be available from the company’s contact centre.

“We know from our market data, that a high proportion of prospective customers of battery tools are already shopping online and many of their home and garden project purchases are already made at Screwfix” said Kay Green, STIHL GB’s Managing Director.

“This new relationship with Screwfix represents an opportunity for STIHL to grow its consumer battery footprint as well as further increasing our brand exposure. It will offer a complementary new dimension to the business we have built with our Approved Dealer network over the last five decades.”

Matt Compton, Screwfix Commercial Director, said: “We’re delighted to announce this new partnership with STIHL which welcomes another leading brand to the Screwfix family. Our customers demand high quality products and with this new range of electric and battery tools and accessories, we’re going even further to provide them with the tools that help them get their jobs done quickly, affordably and right first time.”

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Major brands return to SALTEX

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Major brands return to SALTEX: The Grounds Management Association (GMA) is delighted to welcome back the grounds industry’s leading global brands to SALTEX 2024, the premier event in grounds management. This year’s exhibition is set to be a landmark occasion, showcasing the latest innovations, and providing unparalleled networking opportunities. 

After a year of remarkable growth and development within the industry, SALTEX 2024 will welcome back industry giants including Kubota, Toro and Iseki, all reaffirming their support for the GMA’s vision of excellence in grounds management. These returning brands represent the pinnacle of quality and innovation, offering visitors an exclusive look at cutting-edge products and services.

Major brands return to SALTEX

Major brands return to SALTEX

Visitors can expect to see these big brands (just to name a few!) making their presence known on the show floor:

  • Reesink UK/Toro UK
  • Kubota
  • Dennis Mowers
  • EGO
  • WEIBANG
  • Hilltip
  • Milwaukee
  • Ariensco
  • Grillo
  • Husqvarna UK
  • Kioti UK
  • Cramer
  • ISEKI
  • Origin Amenity Solutions
  • SGL

This year’s show will see DeWalt exhibiting as part of Infinicut’s expanded stand for the first time, as well as McConnel’s making a much-anticipated return for 2024.

Sarah Cunningham, SALTEX Event Director added: “I’m really excited to welcome back our old industry friends and can’t wait to meet our new exhibitors this year. Having these top-tier companies here shows just how important SALTEX is for sharing knowledge, growing professionally, and pushing our industry forward. Their commitment really highlights how much they value being a part of SALTEX.” 

This year SALTEX is also set to welcome an exciting array of new exhibitors broadening the horizons of the grounds management industry. These new exhibitors are poised to introduce innovative products, cutting-edge technologies, and sustainable practices that promise to revolutionise the way we think about grounds management.

Stogger Turf Care, an internationally recognised tech innovator based in the Netherlands, said: “Stogger Turf Care is very excited to participate at SALTEX 2024. We can’t wait to present our new product line and state-of-the-art technologies to this large audience. Let’s ignite your growth potential with Stogger Turf Care.” 

Hayley Group, one of the UK’s foremost value-added suppliers of leading-brand engineering components, consumables, and related support services, are also exhibiting at SALTEX for the first time, and said: “We are delighted to be exhibiting at SALTEX for the first-time in 2024. We’ve got a strong presence in supporting grounds management professionals with their bearings and maintenance consumables, this exhibition will help us build on that. We are looking forward to showing visitors to our stand the full range of products on offer, and how we can be a single-source contact for critical components and consumables they use on a daily basis.”

Their presence signifies the ever-growing interest and investment in the sector. With a commitment to excellence and advancement, these new exhibitors will undoubtedly enrich the SALTEX experience, offering fresh perspectives and opportunities for learning, collaboration, and growth within the grounds community.

SALTEX 2024 promises to be an event brimming with educational sessions, live demonstrations, and interactive exhibits, all designed to empower grounds management professionals.

For more information on SALTEX 2024 and to register for the event, please visit https://www.saltex.org.uk/. You can see the full list of exhibitors here: https://www.saltex.org.uk/exhibitors

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Pro Flora helping to boost biodiversity

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Pro Flora helping to boost biodiversity: After witnessing good results with the Johnsons J All Bent mixture, Woolley Park Golf Club are now enjoying similar success with new eco-friendly areas created with DLF’s Pro Flora range.

The project to enhance habitats and encourage diversity of wildlife has gathered pace in recent years under the stewardship of Head Greenkeeper John Rowbottom who, with the help of DLF’s Stuart Yarwood, has not only boosted biodiversity but brought new life to previously unmanageable areas.

Pro Flora helping to boost biodiversity

Pro Flora helping to boost biodiversity

The West Yorkshire club are longstanding users of seed mixtures from DLF. “We’ve used many different mixtures over the years, and specifically J All Bent for the last five. This just seems to really suit our conditions” explains John, who has worked at Woolley Park since its inception in 1995. “We’ve got USGA spec root zone and we’ve found that the bent grass thrives here, the benefits of which are two-fold – improving the quality of the sward and helping us in the constant fight against Poa, with the Bent outcompeting fescues and other varieties.”

Oversown twice a year during spring and autumn renovations, the reliability and results of the J All Bent programme on the greens is ongoing, allowing John to turn his attention to the viability of other areas. “During the COVID lockdowns we had the time to fully appreciate the rich abundance of wildlife that returned to the site while the course was closed. This really kickstarted our trials with wildflower areas, and since then we’ve worked on another patch of land each year with the results getting better and better! It’s been great to see that, as a result of this work, much of the fauna that returned over that time has stayed.”

“For me, it is essential that whatever we do on the course is sympathetic to the environment around it” he adds. So, when a major renovation project two years ago left a large area of ‘unmanageable’ land, it was then that John consulted with his DLF Regional Technical Manager Stuart Yarwood for advice. “I didn’t want bright, bold colours, instead something more subtle and in keeping with the surroundings that would provide some cover and habitat for pheasants and ground nesting birds.”

Stuart recommended Pro Flora 13, delivering a species-rich mix of UK native origin wildflowers and fine leaved low growing grasses. “This has given us exactly what we wanted from an ecological perspective and, visually, blends in brilliantly beside our in-play areas.”

“I believe it is our responsibility as custodians of land to ensure we are doing what we can to protect the environment, and this is something both Stuart and I are keen to continue developing with our wildflower projects. We are incredibly fortunate to be able to look after 150 acres of land and seeing golfers and wildlife out there enjoying what we craft is priceless.”

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Braehead’s new mowers proves Toro is built to last

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Braehead’s new mowers proves Toro is built to last: With Reesink Turfcare’s Ree.Own scheme, Braehead Golf Club located in Alloa Scotland has taken ownership of two new – or rather used – Toro machines as a cost-effective solution to updating machinery.

Harvey Harrower, the club’s head greenkeeper who has been at the club for 38 years, says when it comes to Toro, going second-hand isn’t a worry: “One of the things we like about using Toro is that they’re built to last.

Braehead’s new mowers proves Toro is built to last

Braehead’s new mowers proves Toro is built to last

“Like most other clubs, we look at buying new machines every five years, but unlike the bigger clubs we tend to look in the second-hand market. The fact that the new ones could already be six or seven years old doesn’t concern us. The machines we’re replacing are 15 years old, and we have other Toro machines that have been going for over 20 years.”

The machines – a Groundsmaster 4300 and hybrid Greensmaster TriFlex 3420 – came to the club via Reesink’s Ree.Own scheme, a dealer network that provides access to all the best quality, Toro turfcare machinery in the UK and Ireland.

Machines rehomed with Ree.Own are guaranteed to have less than 3500 hours use on the clock, used for less than seven years and been through a rigorous multipoint check by Reesink’s expert turfcare technicians.

The scheme is one that works well for the club. “This isn’t the first time we’ve sourced second-hand machines and it certainly won’t be the last,” says Harvey. “Because of the club’s finances, it’s the option that works best for us, and the machines still perform at a really high level. They go through the workshop and are refurbished before they get to us – ours also came with a 12-month warranty.”

Both machines were replacements for mowers the club had used before, but the Greensmaster has one key difference.

“We decided to go with the hybrid model of the Greensmaster 3420. You can slow the speed down and it just gives a better finish,” says Harvey. Something that can be appreciated by the very youngest of the club’s members.

“We have a very active junior section that has taken off recently. The club has put a lot of effort into that, building new tees and reserving tee times every Sunday throughout the year allowing them to play. Being able to play on a course maintained by Toro machinery means they’re able to play and learn on the best quality surfaces from the outset.”

The club’s new-used machinery came through Reesink’s Scottish branch in Livingston, who according to Harvey, made the whole process easy. “Working with Reesink has been great, they were really good at keeping me informed throughout. I just told them what machines I was after and when the machines became available they emailed me pictures with their age and condition, etc.”

Discover more about how your course can benefit from the UK’s only used Toro professional turf machinery network by visiting reeown.co.uk or contact Reesink Scotland by calling 01480 226800 or by email at info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk.

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NemaTrident techniques to target chafer grub larvae

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NemaTrident techniques to target chafer grub larvae: Chafer season has been slow to start this spring, but is now taking off with adult beetles emerging. Moist soils now make ideal conditions for egg laying, with warmer temperatures for larval hatch and feeding activity.

However, warm and moist soil conditions are also ideal for beneficial nematode action to target larvae in the early stages of the life cycle, advises Syngenta Technical Manager, Sean Loakes.

NemaTrident techniques to target chafer grub larvae

NemaTrident techniques to target chafer grub larvae

“Soil temperature consistently above 12⁰C for at least three hours a day are ideal for the NemaTrident B nematode species, Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, that has been specifically selected to effectively target chafer larvae.”

“NemaTrident B can provide highly effective control of chafer larvae. New trials have shown how we can now best harness the beneficial nematodes in effective Integrated Turf Management strategies.”

He points out that chafer control with nematodes is a numbers game, with the more nematodes applied in the optimum conditions, the greater the opportunity for sufficient parasitic worms to get into the active larvae.

“Chafer grubs are remarkably adept at avoiding nematode attacks, using their pseudo legs to wipe nematodes off their torso. However, if there are sufficient nematodes present they will overwhelm larvae, with potential for good results even on larger instar grubs.

“It’s important to select the most appropriate nematode for the target pest, and applying the maximum number in the best condition. Using a product with a mixed population of different nematodes species could result in too few of the required nematodes in the soil zone or inactive at lower soil temperatures,” he warns.

NemaTrident B nematodes are particularly active at seeking out chafer grubs in the soil. Once they penetrate into the larvae, they release a bacteria that kills it. Nematodes move through the soil in a film of moisture, so are best applied when soils are moist and ideally kept irrigated or moist for 14 days after application. Unirrigated sites pose a serious challenge for nematode use, where they should be applied in a period of rainfall.

“NemaTrident should be applied in conjunction with NemaSpreader, a bespoke blend of surfactants designed specifically to retain the conditions for optimum nematode movement in the soil.” Trials have shown up to 30% better soil pest control when NemaTrident is used in conjunction with NemaSpreader.

Sean advocates NemaTrident B application should be timed after the point of peak adult chafer activity and egg laying, to ensure the nematodes are in the soil profile as the larvae are emerging after three to four weeks; young larvae are the most effectively controlled.

Establishing which species of chafer beetle is the key target species will influence optimum application timing, as well as the population of larvae to be controlled, he highlights.

The most common garden chafer, for example, are typically most active egg laying through mid to late June and only have a one-year life cycle that can be especially well targeted for control; while the summer chafer is most active in July and August, as well as having two-year life cycle that is more difficult to control where older large grubs are present.

“That makes timing and application technique so important to get the optimum results. Nematodes are living organisms, and as such have to be treated carefully from delivery, through storage and to application that will ensure the maximum number are applied in the best condition.”

Seans Top Tips for success with nematodes include:

  • Store in the fridge at 4-7⁰C as soon as possible on delivery
  • Pre-mix in lukewarm water before adding to the spray tank
  • Remove filters from the sprayer and ensure it is clean
  • Apply in a water volume of 500 – 1000 litres/hectare
  • Use the Syngenta XC 08 Soil Nozzle
  • Always use NemaSpreader with NemaTrident applications
  • NemaTrident B should be applied at a rate of five billion nematodes per hectare

Syngenta trials have shown the most reliable and consistent chafer grub control with an integrated approach using NemaTrident B plus NemaSpreader, following an Acelepryn insecticide treatment.

Recent studies at Forest Pines Golf Course in Lincolnshire – using a well-timed application of Acelepryn at peak egg laying, followed by NemaTrident B – have confirmed that larger chafer larvae stressed or weakened by Acelepryn may prove more susceptible to nematode incursion, to deliver more effective and reliable overall control.

“Where chafer grubs are the primary target this two-pronged approach can give the optimum results,” reports Sean.

“However, turf mangers and agronomists must be aware that only one application of Acelepryn is permitted per season and with limited treatment area, so if leatherjackets are the greater issue the insecticide may be better utilised there, and NemaTrident B the key asset for chafer grub control.”

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